Pay up Rs 38 lakh for school: BMC tells builder

Eight months after sunday mid-day reported how a government school building in Bandra was vacant for nine years, BMC orders errant builder to cough up cash

Nearly eight months ago, sunday mid-day exposed how a six-storey government school building near Pali Naka in Bandra had become a den for anti-socials.

Now, the BMC has decided that the site will be inspected by the Municipal School Infrastructure Cell. The civic body ordered the builder to pay Rs 38 lakh for repairs and to ensure that the school — constructed to provide free education to the area’s 500 underprivileged children — starts by July 2014. Asif Zakaria, councillor, Bandra West, said, “An NGO will run the school and initiate the admission process.”

In the letter (SMD has a copy), the BMC cell instructs the developer to grant occupation to the building by handing over the premises to the local H West Ward office, which will give it to education department.